Fruit Salad Nail Art Tutorial

Im back with another nail art tutorial and I'm probably not the only one who has seen a lot of fruit nail art flying around the internet (especially watermelons!). With this in mind and because its super summery, I thought I would create a fruit salad nail art. Cherrys, Kiwis, Watermelons and Lemons make up my nail medley so if you want to find out how I created this look then keep on reading....

All you will need for this nail art is a selection of nail varnish shades - light green, dark green, red, white, black, yellow and coral. You will also need some nail art tools; I used a mixture of dotting tools and nail art brushes to create my design.
I used a selection of Illamasqua, Rimmel, Graffiti Nails, Mavala and Models Own polished to create my design.

Step-By-Step Tutorial:

Step 1: Begin by painting all nails in a base of white polish. I went for 2 coats to ensure my base was super opaque. 

Step 2: Once the base coats were dry, I used a dotting tool to create the outline on each fruit. I actually ended up changing the lemons to circles instead of slices.

Step 3: Next its time to create the detailing. For the majority of the designs I used an ultra fine nail art brush, as this made it easier to create the super thin lines and dots. 

Step 4: Finally once everything is dry, go in with a top coat and paint a layer onto each nail. Also be sure to take the top coat over the tip of the nail to make them last a little longer.

And there you have your fruit salad nail art! 

What do you think of this nail art design? Which is your favourite nail?

Thank you so much for reading and if you recreate this look yourself happy nail art-ing!

Sam xx

Neon Tie Dye Nail Art Tutorial

So I couldn't help but use my new Models Own Polish for tans collection in the next nail art I did and this funky tie dye design is what I came up with! As always I have put together a pictorial as well as what you may need to create a similar look yourself so keep reading...

What will you need?
A selection of neon nail varnishes, as I mentioned I used three shades from the Models Own 'Polish For Tans' collection. You will also need a white nail varnish, I used Models Own 'Coconut Cream'. Amongst all the colourful goodness you will need a top coat, some tape and a cut up sponge.

Step-By-Step Tutorial:

Step 1: Begin by applying the white nail varnish to the base of each nail. After you have left this to dry COMPLETELY you can add the tape to each nail. I cut the tape to make small triangles.

Step 2: Take one of your neon shades onto a sponge and press this randomly over the nails. Repeat this for step 3 and 4, filling in all the gaps.

Step 5: Peel off the tape to reveal your design. 

Step 6: Finally add a layer of top coat to each nail. This will even out the nail and add a shine finish!

And there you have your Neon Tie Dye nail art!

What do you think of this nail art design? Will you be throwing on the neon shades this summer?

Happy Nail Art-ing! Sam x

Double Darkness Eye Make-Up Tutorial

I put a photo up on my Instagram earlier this week of a double darkness eye make-up look and it went down very well. Therefore I thought I would produce a step-by-step tutorial on how I created this look.

Creating a dark smokey effect in the inner and outer corners of the eye is something I am seeing more and more people create, as well as being a look I love to wear. All you need to create this look are a selection of eye shadow shades, including at least one dark shade. You will also need a range of brushes to help you apply and blend the shadows effectively. To create my eye I used the Urban Decay Naked 3 Palette, applying the four shades shown in the image below...

Step-By-Step Tutorial:

Step 1: To begin I applied my foundation and defined my brows. You may want to leave out finishing off the skin with blusher etc. until you have finished the eyes, just incase you get some fall down.

Step 2: Taking 'Limit' from the Naked 3 palette, I applied this all over the lid and under the lower lash line.

Step 3: Taking 'Factory' from the Naked 3 palette, I placed this into the inner and outer corners using a small brush and blended this upwards into the socket. 

Step 4: Next taking 'Blackheart' from the Naked 3 palette, I darkened the inner and outer corners of the eye further. To define the contrast of light and dark further, I then took 'Strange' from the Naked 3 palette and pressed this onto the centre of the lid.

Step 5: This wouldn't be an 'insamazement' eye look without a flick of eyeliner, so next I took the Maybelline Gel Liner and applied this to the upper lash line, flicking it out at the corner of the eye.

Step 6: To finish off the look I coated my lashes in mascara. 

And there you have your double darkness eye look!

To finish off the look I applied a neutral look using Illamasqua Lip Colouring Pencil in Fantasy.

What do you think of this make-up look? Have you ever created a double darkness eye make-up yourself? I would love to know your thoughts so please comment below.

Sam xx

How To Create Lips That Last

Does it annoy you having to constantly look in a mirror to check your lipstick is in place and you're not left with the colour just around the edge of your lips? Well I have the answer! This is a tip which I picked up a little while ago, and it has changed my life. The key to creating lips that last is layering!

Before picking up this tip I always thought lip liners were for the more mature lady, to help shape your lips as you get older, however I was so wrong! All you will need to create lips that last is a lip liner and lipstick in similar shades. As you can see I have gone for a bright raspberry pink using Illamasqua Lip Colouring Pencil in Temptress and Lipstick in Atomic, however there are many different combos I create each day. 

Step-By-Step:

Step 1: Wipe any foundation or powder from the lips in order to make it easier for yourself to fill in the lips.

Step 2: Taking your lip liner line the entire edge of your lips, going slightly over the edge of the lip line where necessary to create a full, even shape.

Step 3: Again using the lip liner, fill in the middle of the lips to create an even cover.

Step 4: Finally take your lipstick and apply this over the entire lips.

And there you have your lips that last! As I mentioned the key part of this is layering products. You could even go in again with your lipstick to add another layer to the mix. I normally only have to apply my lipstick again once in the day (normally after I have eaten at lunch) and not worry about my lipstick budging again. 

I hope this helps and let me know any make-up tips you have or which lip combos you have been loving recently! I would love to hear from you!

Samantha xx

How To Define Your Brows

Its only been recently that I have started to care more about my brows, and define them more in my daily make-up routine. I think a major part of this is through interning at Illamasqua, I am surrounded by people with amazing 'Illamasqua Brows' on a daily basis and picking up tips and tricks from Illamasqua artists has worked magic on my brows!

So what do I use to define my brows? 
The two major products are Illamasqua Concealer and Brow Cake. I also use the Illamasqua Concealer Brush and Angled brush to apply these and set it all into place using the Maybelline Brow Drama.

How I define my brows:

Step 1: To begin I apply concealer all around my brows using the concealer brush. This helps to hide away any hairs sprouting through which are too small to pluck out and helps you to shape the brow.

Step 2: Next using the concealer brush and my foundation buffing brush, I buff the concealer into the skin. 

Step 3: Taking Eye Brow Cake in the shade Peek on an angled brush, I create the outline of my brow taking a small amount of product onto the front of the brow.

Step 4:Again using the andled brush and Eye Brow Cake, I fill in the centre of my brows, pushing the remaining product left on the brush on the front of the brow.

Step 5: Finally taking the Maybelline Brow Drama in Dark Blonde, I set the brows into place, pulling the hairs up towards the front of the brow to create a more natural effect. 

And there you have your define brows!

The Illamasqua Eye Brow Cake has transformed my brows, and you can also use it wet to make it into more of a brow paste. If you want to get your hands on this, it comes in many different shades and you can get worldwide delivery on the Illamasqua website.

What products have you been loving to define your brows? I would love to know so please leave a comment below!

Samantha x

Golden Smokey Eye Make-Up Tutorial

Im back with another make-up tutorial and today its a golden smokey eye look using the Illamasqua Neutral Palette, along with the Sugarpill Brush Set and some other make-up goodness! I have created a step-by-step pictorial of this look and I think its perfect for lots of different occasions!

What did I use to create this look?

To create this look I used eye shadows from the Illamasqua 'Neutral Palette', 'Permanent Taupe' Colour Tattoo from Maybelline, the gel liner from Maybelline and Illamasqua 'Masquara'. I applied these products using the Sugarpill Brush Set which I love!

Step-By-Step Tutorial:

Step 1: To begin I applied the Maybelline Colour Tatoo in 'Permanent Taupe' all over my lid using my finger. this will act as a primer, to help the make-up stay in place that little bit longer.

Step 2: Next, taking the brown shade from the Illamasqua 'Neutral Palette', I applied this to the crease and outer edge of the eye using the Sugarpill Tapered Blending Brush. 

Step 3: Taking the golden eye shadow in the palette, on the Sugarpill Large Eye Shadow Brush, I applied this all over the lid and under the lower lash line. 

Step 4: Next, I took the nude eye shadow from the palette, again onto the tapered blending brush, and applied this to my brow bone to blend the shadows further.

Step 5: Using the Maybelline gel liner on a Sugarpill Precision Eyeliner Brush, I added a flick of liner to my top lash line.

Step 6: Finally I added a coat of mascara to my lashes, using Illamasqua Masquara, to finish off the look.

And there you have your golden smokey eye make-up!

I paired this look with Kiko 'Pink Carnation' lipstick to create more of a day-time make-up look, however you could transform this to a night time look by adding a slightly darker lip!

What do you think of this make-up look? What products have you been loving to create your own eye make-up?

If you want to find out how I define my brows, like I have in the look above, subscribe to my blog as I have a blog post on this coming up very soon!

Thanks for reading! Samantha xx

Make Your Own Flower Crown

I am loving a flower crown at the moment and I have seen lots around, but I either don't like the colours of the flowers or feel they are slightly too big. Therefore I decided to try and make my very own flower crown so that I could make it exactly how I wanted! If you want to find out exactly how I made my flower crown keep reading!

What will you need?

In order to make your own flower crown you will need a selection of flowers in colours of your choice (I used flowers which were attached to hair bands and cut them off), a plain head band and some felt. You will also need a glue gun/ fast drying glue and some scissors. 

Making the flower crown:

To begin with you will need to cut some of the felt into tear shape pieces. These will be used to attach the flowers to the head band.

Next you need to take a flower, place some glue onto the back and press it onto the head band. I held it in place for about 30 seconds in order to ensure it did not move and slide to one side.

Using a piece of felt I placed glue on one end and pushed it onto the side of the flower. I then glued the other end and pulled it round to the other side of the flower. Ensure that the felt is tight around the head band.

Complete these steps on each flower until you have the desired amount on the head band. I put enough flowers to cover the entire headband, leaving a small gap at the bottom so the head band would comfortably fit behind my ears.

And there you have your very own flower crown! I hope you enjoyed this mini tutorial and if you make one be sure to let me know in the comments below!

Until next time, Samantha xx

Liquorice Allsorts Nail Art

This week I have another nail art for you all. This one is based on the Liquorice Allsorts sweets! It's quite a tricky one so if you have plenty of time and want to try something slightly challenging why not give it a go!

What will you need?

In order to create this nail art you will need nail varnish in black, white, light pink, dark pink, light blue, bright blue, yellow and a top coat. You will also need a dotting tool and a small sponge. I used the following nail varnishes: Miss Sporty 'Black', Barry M 'Matt White', Seventeen 'Miami', Rimmel 'Cranberry Zest', No7 'Minty Fresh', Illamasqua 'Cameo' and Miss Sporty 'Yellow'. 

Step-by-Step Guide:

Step 1: Paint all nails in a base of black. I painted two coats of black varnish onto my nails to make the base more opaque.

Step 2: Using the light pink and a dotting tool place circles randomly over the nails.

Step 3: Again using the dotting tool and this time yellow nail varnish place circles randomly over the nail.

Step 4: Taking the bright blue nail varnish and the dotting tool, again randomly place circles over the nails.

Step 5: Using the dotting tool once more and the white nail varnish, apply squares/rectangles over the nails in any available spaces.

Step 6: This time take the dark pink and place circles into any space left on the nails. I only placed this colour onto some nails as I didn't want to make them look overcrowded.

Step 7: Taking the black again and the dotting tool, put circles into the centre of the yellow and light pink circles and place a stripe into the centre of the white squares/rectangles.

Step 8: Using the sponge, take the light blue and light pink nail varnish and sponge these over the bright blue and dark pink circles.

Step 9: The final step to this nail art is to paint a top coat over all nails once they are dry. This will prevent chipping and even out the nails where the design has been applied. 

Thank you for reading! Have you been creating any cool nail arts recently? Let me know what you think of this fun liquorice allsorts nail art too!

Until next time, Samantha xx

Cath Kidston Inspired Nail Art

This week I decided to try quite a detailed nail art look based on a Cath Kidston style flower print. Below is the look I created and if you want to find out how I achieved this keep reading...

What will you need?

You will need a variety of different coloured nail varnishes depending on the colour flowers and base you want. I used varnishes in baby and pale blue, purple, green, mint, dark pink and light pink. You will also need a nail art tool (alternatively a hair grip or cocktail stick would work fine) and a piece of paper to blob the nail varnish onto in order to easily pick up the varnish to apply to the nails.

Step by Step Guide...

Step 1: After applying the blue base coat and waiting for it to fully dry I took the dark pink nail varnish and created rough rose shapes. I added two of these to each nail.

Step: Next I added the purple flower shapes, roughly adding an odd circle shape to achieve this. I added two or three to each nail.

Step 3: Next using the mint colour I added lines coming out of the flowers in order to create leaves. I also added a dot of the pale blue in the centre of the purple flowers.

Step 4: Using a paler pink nail varnish I roughly added this over the top of the dark pink roses, mainly in the centre and around the edges.

Step 5: After completing step 4 I was not happy with the leaves as I didn't think they stood out enough. Therefore I went over the top of the mint colour I previously applied with a brighter green colour. 

Finished Look: Once you have completed all steps wait for your nails to dry and add a top coat over the top to prevent chipping.

Hope you like this look as much as I do and good luck creating this look yourselves!!

Ombre Nails

I have always seen lots of pictures of people creating an ombre nail art on instagram and pinterest look and I never tried it myself .. until now. Below is the ombre nail art I created, keep reading to find out how I created this look ...

I chose to do a variation on the standard ombre nail and added daisy flowers over the top. I feel this created a really summery nail and I personally loved this look!

What will you need?

As you can see in the image above the ombre nail look is really easy to create and requires very few materials. All you need is two shades of nail varnish (I used the pale pink and coral) and a sponge to create the ombre effect and then I used a white and yellow nail varnish and my nail art tool to create the daisies. 

How to create the look ...

Step 1: First of all I painted my nail in 2 coats of the pale pink colour to create a base.

Step 2: Once the pale pink varnish was dried I then blobbed a small amount of the coral nail varnish onto a piece of paper. Next I dipped the sponge into the coral nail varnish and dabbed this on top of the pale pink up to about the middle of each nail. I repeated this sponging step twice over, moving up my nail each time in order to make the coral darker towards the top of the nail.

Step 3: Once the coral was dry (which was pretty quick as sponging only adds a thin layer of varnish onto the nail) I used my nail art tool to create the daisies in the usual way I create flowers in all my nail art looks. 

Step 4: Finally I added a top coat over my nails in order to prevent chipping and smooth out any bumps created by the sponging. 

Thanks for reading! Hope you love this look as much as I do :)

Ladybird Nail Art

The weather in Bournemouth this week has put me in such a summery mood so I decided to do another summery nail art look. This time I did ladybirds, so if you want to find out how I created the nail art look below keep reading... 

What will you need?

In order to create the look above you will need nail varnish in red, white and black. I used a nail art tool to do the fine details, however alternatively you could use a thin brush or toothpick. 

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1 : Begin by painting all your nails in a red nail varnish and leave to dry.

Step 2 : Once the red base is dry create a semi-circle shape on the tip of your nail using a black nail varnish. I used the brush end of my nail art tool to achieve this.

Step 3 : Next, again with the black nail varnish draw on the antennas. This time I used the ball end of the nail art tool to carefully drag up the nail varnish. I then put a small dot of black nail varnish on the top of the antennas. 

Step 4 : Next, again using black nail varnish and the ball end of the nail art tool I put spots all over the red area of the nail.

Step 5 : Ensuring that the black tip is dry you can now create the white of the eye using the white nail varnish. I used the ball end of the nail art tool, dragging the nail varnish in a circular shape.

Step 6 : Finally place a small dot of black into the centre of the white dots on the tip of the nail to create the centre of the eye.

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial !!

Mint and Daisy Summer Nails

As it is coming up to summer I wanted to create a summery nail art look so I decided to do daisy flowers over a mint base. If you want to find out how I created the look below keep reading...

What will you need?

In order to create the look similar to mine you will need a mint, white and gold nail varnish. You could alternatively use a yellow nail varnish instead of gold in order to create a brighter look and make the daisy's more effective. You will also need a nail art tool. I did a previous blog post on the nail art tool I have ... I purchased mine from Avon and in this nail art look I used the brush end of the tool. 

Step-by-Step Guide

After painting the nails all over with the mint base colour there are two general steps to this nail art look.

Step 1: Once the base is dry, using the brush end of the tool and the white nail varnish, paint on the daisy petals. I used one brush stroke per nail and did two coats of the white in order to achieve a more opaque colour. 

Step 2: Once the white petals are dry you can move on to painting on the centre of the flowers. Again I used the brush end of the nail art tool and placed the gold in the corners of my nails in order to create the middle of the flowers. 

Hope you enjoyed this look and happy nail painting! :) 

How to do a Simple Messy High Bun

When I'm having a bad hair day or simply just not in the mood to style my hair and wear it down I love putting it up in a high messy bun which is really on trend at the moment. Keep reading to find out how I create a messy bun like the one shown in the image below ...

What will you need?

In order to create this look you will need a hairband, some hair grips and a comb. 

Step by Step Guide ...

Step 1: Begin by tying your hair up in a pony tail. I usually tip my head upside down in order to be able to get my pony tail higher on my head. The higher the pony tail the higher your bun so tie your hair into place wherever you want the centre of your bun to be. After I am happy with where the pony tail is I like to pull small piece of hair out at the side and loosen the hair on the top and side to make it more loose and messy.

Step 2: Next I back comb the whole pony tail. I usually take small sections at a time as shown in the image and using the comb brush up and down the piece of hair. Because my hair is quite thick when it has just been washed and hasn't been straightened I don't back comb my hair too much. The more your back comb the less gaps there will be in your bun. 

Step 3: Next I take small sections of the pony tail and fold them under gripping them into place with hair grips. I usually add more grips after I have folded under the whole pony tail as you might need to pull some of the pieces across in order to cover up any gaps you may have in the bun. 

Hope you enjoyed this step to step guide of creating this look and lots of look creating this look yourself!! :)